Selly Oak Vets4Pets

Jacob at reception of this Vets' practice has been brilliant. He printed out all the consultations and immunisations for my cat Kaali. Not only this he also very kindly printed out, the consultation of the previous vets which were forwarded here. He was very helpful and answered all my queries.

Unprofessional Conduct and Inappropriate Labelling During My Cat’s Appointment I have been registered with here for approximately one year and have always had positive, respectful interactions with your team until this incident. Unfortunately, the conduct of Elisa and Nadia on this occasion left me feeling deeply uncomfortable, unfairly judged, and disrespected. When I arrived, I explained that Mollie had scratched me while I was putting her into the carrier. There was no bleeding, only superficial red marks. I simply asked whether Elisa could help safely take Mollie out of the carrier, as she was gripping the base firmly and it was difficult for me to do so alone. Without making any attempt to assess Mollie’s behaviour firsthand, Elisa immediately assumed that if Mollie scratched me, she would scratch her as well, and said she was not obliged to risk being scratched. At that point Mollie was not hissing, growling, striking, or displaying aggression — she was merely holding on to the carrier base. Elisa then suggested that perhaps my leaving the room would make Mollie calmer. I found this suggestion inappropriate and offensive, particularly as cats do not typically behave like dogs in such circumstances, and I have never been asked this question in any of my previous visits. Due to her dismissive tone and refusal to even attempt handling, I requested to see another vet. Nadia then entered and repeated Elisa’s assumptions, but to her credit, she did at least try to help. Mollie came out without hissing, striking, or showing any aggressive behaviour, and she was vaccinated successfully. This demonstrated very clearly that the earlier assumptions about Mollie being “aggressive” or “unstable” were inaccurate and unfair. However, rather than acknowledging this, Nadia insisted that Elisa was still “right”, referring to her experience with dogs and stating that pets reflect their owners’ stress. More concerning was that Nadia then labelled me as “aggressive”, solely because of my body posture (I was standing with my arms folded while feeling understandably upset by the situation). I was not shouting, threatening, or obstructing anyone. I repeatedly and calmly asked Nadia whether Mollie had hurt her at any point, and she refused to answer, stating the question had “no meaning”, before leaving the room. Throughout the entire appointment: • My cat was negatively judged before any contact was made • My legitimate concerns were dismissed rather than listened to • I was labelled “aggressive” without justification • The situation was handled defensively instead of professionally Being labelled “aggressive” for expressing reasonable concern in a calm but firm manner is deeply upsetting and inappropriate. This type of language is particularly harmful towards women and people from minority backgrounds, and it raises serious concerns about potential bias in how clients are perceived and treated. Regardless of the underlying reason, such language should not be used lightly or as a means to deflect accountability. This has been the worst experience I have had at any veterinary practice, and it has significantly damaged my trust.

The receptionists have poor communication skills bordering verbal abuse at times and are unprofessional. I have been 5 times because I am on a care plan and had a bad experience all 5 times. Some vets are decent but some seem like even they're not convinced with their management plan. As soon as my plan finishes I will be going elsewhere.

I took my dog Jester here for six months when I first moved to Birmingham, she was around 6 months old. Due to covid restriction I wasn’t allowed into the examination room when I took her, which was basically monthly due to an on-going skin condition and needing to be spade. I noticed as I was taking her she became more reluctant to go to the vets, to the point I would have to convince her the stairs with treats. I wasn’t sure what was happening but the vets started mentioning she might need to wear a muzzle during the visits. She had never shown any signs of aggression before so it wasn’t something I had. I was also always made to wait a very long time, sometimes up to an hour to pick her up with no exclamations given for the delay. When one vet did let me back briefly for part of the examination as she wanted to show me something I discovered they had labelled Jester a dangerous dog and had been pinning her down to examining her and pulling on her ears to examining them with no regard to her comfort or pain levels. They even told me that when she snapped I had to act tough and tell her off. Disgusted I removed her and took her to different vets. She was absolutely terrified at the new vet and wouldn’t let any of them near her. I completely blame Vets4Pets as before this she had never had a problem with vets. This is also when she learned to be scared of other dogs. Please, please don’t take your dog to this vets!

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